Baghdad car bombs kill 11 as violence spirals

BAGHDAD: Attacks in Iraq, including car bombs in Baghdad, killed eleven people on Thursday, the latest in a surge of violence that has left 166 dead in a week and sparked fears of all-out sectarian conflict.

The UN has called for Iraq's leaders to urgently hold talks to resolve wide-ranging political disputes that have been linked to the surge in unrest.

The government's public response has thus far been limited to speeches, a shakeup of senior security officers and announcing a series of vague new measures relating to security.

Amid all the statements and pronouncements, the violence has intensified.

On Thursday morning, a car bomb in northeast Baghdad killed four people and wounded a dozen more, while another vehicle packed with explosives went off in the centre of the capital, leaving two dead and 10 wounded, officials said.

Two border policemen were also ambushed along the main Iraq-Jordan highway and shot dead.

Violence a day earlier, including a bombing against a bridal party in south Baghdad, killed 28 people.